Cinderella and the Lady (7 page)

Her fingers twitched with the urge to caress Elle’s mouth or cheek. If she was more forward, she would have stolen a kiss, but this wasn’t like Leena, who welcomed her touch, or the bored Finnish wives and widows who liked experimenting in the bedroom.

By the time Kristina finished her story, Elle wrapped her arms around her legs and rested her chin on top of her knees, her attention never waning, watching her the entire time. Earlier, she had taken off her jacket and unbuttoned the top of her blouse to cool off. She wanted to lie on her side and ask Elle to join her, but every time she moved in closer, Elle became wary and tense. She didn’t want to frighten the poor girl, but wanted to ease the tension between them.

The next step was arranging another meeting to see if they were as compatible as she thought they were. If so, she would then announce who she was really was and offer Elle employment in her parents’ house.

Her throat had become dry from her talking and she bemoaned the fact she didn’t have anything to quench her thirst.

“Forgive me, I need a moment to rest my voice,” she stated and cleared her throat.

Elle dug into her basket and produced an apple. She held it out in an offering. “Here, take this. It should soothe your parched throat.”

She smiled in thanks and took the fruit, deliberately gliding her fingers over the ridges of Elle’s knuckles. She then took a big bite and moaned from the sweet juices filling her mouth.

“This is wonderful.” She saluted with the half-eaten apple and spread out her legs, rotating her ankles back and forth to alleviate the stiffness there.

“Apples are my favorite fruit,” Elle smiled down at August, who dozed in her lap. She scratched between his ears and he yawned. “The best kind of pie to make is apple. The smell of cinnamon fills the kitchen and it sticks in your hair and in your skin. My mother loved to…um.” She shut her mouth and turned away to look off to the side.

She stopped chewing, waiting for Elle to tell her about her mother. She didn’t, and that made her all the more intrigued.

“Forgive me for prying, but you don’t see your mother often or is she…?” She waved her hand around for Elle to carry on.

Elle stared out at the ocean. “My mother was killed in an accident when I was a child. Things weren’t the same at home after she died.”

A pang of sympathy came over Kristina as Elle’s voice grew childlike while she spoke about her mother gone too soon. She took Elle’s hand, brushing her thumb across the inside of her wrist. Elle didn’t flinch or pull away.

The sound of the crashing waves and chirps of the seagulls filled the lull between them. It wasn’t until August climbed off her lap and sniffed around did Elle take back her hand and fiddle with the basket, examining it as if something special was hidden inside.

Kristina threw her half-eaten apple away and rubbed her hands together to erase the stickiness coating her fingers. A square wooden board near the corner of the blanket caught her eye. She picked it up, trying to read the strange lettering drawn on the board.

Something like a grunt came from Elle. She glanced up. Elle’s face had lost her color.

“What’s wrong?” she asked and reached out for Elle’s arm.

Elle motioned with her chin at the slate in Kristina’s hand. “That’s my slate.”

“I can see it’s a slate. What are you using it for?”

“To…practice my penmanship and to read better.”

Aha! That’s why she reacted the way she did. She must be ashamed by her lack of schooling.

“Oh? That’s admirable. Not many women in your situation would further their education.” She held out the slate for Elle to take. “But why do it alone? Isn’t there a tutor nearby you can go to for lessons?”

Elle grabbed the slate and set the book on top of it. Kristina tried to catch the name of the book, but it was dropped in the basket and covered.

“I can’t afford no money for a teacher,” Elle said in a tight voice and tugged on the frayed hem of her dress.

“It’s better if you leave out the word, ‘no’, as in, I can’t afford to pay for a teacher,” Kristina corrected.

“Either way I say it doesn’t matter. I do the best with what I have.” Elle stuck out her chin.

That’s the spirit, my darling girl. Speak your mind!
She wanted to cheer.

Elle suddenly dropped her head down and her shoulders sagged.

“Are you all right?” Kristina set her hand on Elle’s shoulder, keeping it there for a moment, then sliding down her arm.

Elle nibbled on her bottom lip. “I apologize, my lady. I shouldn’t have spoken so rudely. I should know better than to show my temper in such a way.”

She tilted Elle’s chin up. Her eyes showed bleak remorse. Kristina’s chest stung. This poor girl needed some coddling. She wanted to be the one to give that to her.

“Now, listen to me. You have nothing to be ashamed of. You’re hardworking, like most of the people in this town not born into privilege. Many can’t read or don’t care to learn. But you, my precious girl, have taken the step in the right direction.” She tugged on one of Elle’s curls.

Elle wiped her cheek and laughed softly when August lifted up and swiped his paw against her chin. She pulled him into an embrace and kissed his nose.

“Even your kitty thinks the same way I do,” she joked and Elle laughed again.

“Thank you,” Elle said and dropped August back down. “You’re a nice lady.”

“I should like to think so.” Her stomach did a little flip over Elle’s compliment.

Elle gave her a small smile and rose to leave.

“You’re leaving?” Moving to her feet, she wanted to keep talking to her new friend.

“It’s getting late and I have to make dinner.” Elle moved the basket off to the side and lifted up the blanket.

The sun wasn’t as high as it had been before and the ocean had grown calm. Kristina hugged her arms around her waist, feeling a slight chill in the air. She had enjoyed her conversation with Elle and wished she could prolong it. The odds of them spending more time together was small. She could only imagine how that would go over with the townspeople. The gossip about the duke’s daughter befriending a lowly servant girl would be unrelentless.

She kicked a pebble away and tapped her fingers against her hip. There had to be a way—
aha
!

Lifting her hands to her mouth, her joy mounted over her amazing idea that would allow her and Elle to remain in contact.

“Are you feeling well, miss? Your eyes have gone all glassy like,” Elle asked.

Kristina stepped forward and smiled down into Elle’s face. “I have a marvelous idea. I can tutor you in your studies.”

Elle stared at her disbelief. “Why would you want to do such a thing? Don’t you have better things to do, like shop?”

She laughed. Elle’s question didn’t come out as defensive, but the opposite, with an open and innocent tone to it. She could understand why Elle thought the way she did. Most women of quality who had a fortune at their disposal spent most of their days in leisure.

“You’re very intuitive. I do enjoy shopping just like any woman, but every so often I shake things up and do something out of the ordinary.” She beamed, delighted with her reasoning.

Elle didn’t seem to agree. Her forehead burrowed and strain lines appeared around her mouth. “I don’t know what in-tu-itive means, but I won’t be a charity case to make you feel good about yourself.” She turned away and lifted August, who chewed on a broken piece of shell.

Kristina twisted her hands, feeling rotten for making Elle upset.
I must fix this before she rushes away.

Elle lifted August in her arms. “I spoke badly just now and shouldn’t have. I keep forgetting my position and how you’re a peer of the realm.”

She wanted to correct Elle but that would be just another lie. “That might be the case but I’m not going to obsess about it like you are. Can’t we pretend we’re equals?”

Elle bent down, placing August in her basket as her answer.

Kristina nibbled her bottom lip.
Think!
She stalled Elle by bending down and crooning to the cat. He responded by licking her fingers.

“At least your cat likes me.” Her lips slipped into a small pout.

A blush colored Elle’s cheeks. “I like you also,” she whispered and ran her palm down August’s back.

Her hand landed over Elle’s and she halted her movements. “Before you say no, please hear me out. I want to tutor you not because you’re a charity case but because I want to be your friend. I know of a place where we can be alone and uninterrupted. I’m allowed access to the duke’s land as his guest. There’s a vacant gamekeeper’s cottage on the edge of his property near the river. We can use it as a schoolroom.”

“What about the Lady Kristina or Lord Simon? Won’t they question why you’re spending time with a servant?”

“They don’t have to know. They’re fine with me going off by myself. As long as I’m back in time for dinner, no one will find it odd. We can meet for an hour or two each day.”

“I can’t. My duties take up a lot of my time.” Elle took August back.

She crossed her arms, annoyed. “Really? I guess your duties today weren’t too pressing.”

Elle gave her a sheepish smile and brushed back a piece of her hair that had fallen over her eye. “Sometimes my mistress can be generous when it suits her.”

Not to be undaunted, Kristina wouldn’t budge without getting what she wanted. “I’ll work around your schedule. When are you free next?”

Elle stared up at the sky and her cheeks bulged out as she blew out air. “In three days, on Sunday. After morning Mass, my mistress visits with friends, then takes a long nap before supper. I guess I can get away for a few hours.”

“Shall we say around three o’clock on Sunday afternoon, then?”

“Are you certain I won’t get in trouble being on the duke’s property?”

The nervous look Elle shot her way had Kristina longing to comfort her. Now was not the time, but soon enough she would. Instead, she smiled brightly. “Trust me. There’s no reason to worry. I’ll handle everything.”

“I’ll try.”

For now Elle’s begrudging acceptance was good enough for her. She conceded, ecstatic she had gotten her way.

“Now I really must go before I get in trouble. Thank you for keeping me company.” Elle curtsied and grabbed her clogs.

What ghastly shoes.
Kristina eyed the footwear with disdain. They were unsightly and the color of mud, with unidentifiable stains.

“They might be ugly but don’t pinch my feet and are very serviceable.” Elle came to her footwear’s defense as she lifted a clog in the air.

Kristina wouldn’t tease the woman about her hideous shoes. She didn’t want to say or do anything else that could offend. “I imagine they are. I actually prefer my riding boots.” She waved in the general direction were they lay. “Slippers are not the most effective for walking long distances. Dancing can be a trial. Some gentleman always ends up treading on my poor toes.”

“I’ve never been dancing before.”

“Never? How can that be?” she asked, taken aback.

Elle shrugged. “No time, really.”

“I must teach you to dance then. A woman cannot go through life not knowing how dance.” She lifted a finger in the air to push her point home.

Elle’s lips twitched. “I’ll keep that in mind.” She gathered the rest of her things and climbed up the short incline to the top.

“Don’t forget, three o’clock Sunday near the river where it runs across Perrault’s property. You won’t be able to miss the small white building in need of a new coat of paint.”

Elle stared down at her from above. “I’ll be able to find it. Goodbye.” With a wave, she disappeared from view.

Kristina didn’t follow Elle. There was no way she could be sneaky about it with her horse. For now she’d allow Elle her secrets, but soon enough she would learn all of them and introduce her skittish friend to a whole new world that had been denied her.

Ellie kept an ear out for Geraldine and Mina while she packed a basket with fruit, cheese, and bread for her study lesson with Diana. When August brushed against her leg, she lifted him up to her face. He licked her cheek and meowed.

“Sorry, but you must stay home for now. I have an important appointment and it’s better if I go alone.” She gave him a hug and placed him back on the floor.

Wiping off her hands with a towel, she waited for Geraldine and Mina to leave for their shopping excursion. For some reason, they didn’t attend Mass or sleep in. She had to help them with their baths, then serve them brunch, which they ate at their leisure. If they didn’t leave soon, she would never meet Diana on time.

Her stomach cramped and every time her bodice brushed up against her chest, her breasts itched. When she thought about Diana, her nips, which had always been flat as coins, tingled and stuck out. She palmed a globe and gave her tender flesh a squeeze. She closed her eyes and bit the inside of her cheek. This morning in bed she gave into the temptation and stuck her hand inside her nightgown. She played with her swollen nips— something she had never done before. A slight dampness had formed in between her thighs. She shifted her palm down over her mound, and when she slipped her fingers inside her feminine folds, the throbbing grew. She almost cried out from the wonderful build-up of pressure, and as she pressed down, a jolt ran through her body and a strange fluttering sensation settled in between her legs. She’d never experienced anything like it and wanted to continue touching herself but stopped, fearful of what would happen next.

For the past three days her sleep had been restless. When she closed her eyes, Diana would appear. Ellie couldn’t stop thinking of her. She was anxious to see her beautiful lady again, her nerves making her sick to her stomach. She leaned back against the kitchen table and took in a few deep breaths. That familiar fluttering in her belly and in between her legs grew.

The kitchen door swung open and she snapped to attention.

“There you are! Mama has been calling for you.” Mina fisted her hands on her hips. “You should hop to it before she comes back here.”

“I was busy cleaning the kitchen.” Ellie hastened her pace with Mina on her heels.

“You haven’t been yourself of late. You stare off into the distance with a silly look on your face and yesterday you almost broke the vase on the side table under the window upstairs.” Mina jumped out in front of her and crossed her arms with a suspicious look on her face. “You’re hiding something. You should tell me before Mama finds out.”

Panic shot up Ellie’s spine. Mina would run to her mother regardless of whatever story she came up with.

“It’s nothing, really. I think the sun from the other day went to my head. The sudden turn in the weather makes me slow. Remember the same thing happened to me last year? It must be allergies.” She crossed her two fingers behind her back over her lie.

Mina shook her head. “How could I forget? You were the reason I came down with a bad cold and had to stay in bed for almost a week.”

Mina was sick last year, but not because of Ellie. Most of the townspeople had succumbed to the flu, including Mina and Geraldine. While Ellie only had a small cough and a stuffy nose, she had suffered by taking care of both cranky women from morning to night.

“You should keep your distance, then. I wouldn’t want to get you or stepmother sick.”

Mina took a step back and held up her hands. “You don’t have to worry. Mama and I will be gone all day and won’t return until late tonight. We’re having dinner with the Countess Tremaine and Lord Robert.”

Ellie held back a sigh of relief. Whenever Mina and Geraldine visited the two siblings at their home, they always stayed away for hours, sometimes spending the night. Perhaps this would be one of those times.

She started to ask Mina if that would be the case but was interrupted when Geraldine surfaced from the drawing room.

“There you are.” Geraldine patted Mina’s cheek and gave Ellie an irate look. “Why didn’t you come when I called for you?”

Ellie lowered her eyes away from Geraldine’s sourpuss of a face. She tried to think of an excuse but was saved by Mina.

“Ellie was outside watering the garden. We started chatting and the time ran away from us.” Mina gave her mother an apologetic stare.

Geraldine nodded in satisfaction at her daughter. She turned back to Ellie and her lips dropped into a flat line.

The dong of the grandfather clock rang out and Mina gasped. “Shouldn’t we leave soon? There might be a crush at the emporium. I know how you hate waiting.”

“You’re so sensitive to my needs.” Geraldine kissed her cheek. Mina preened under her mother’s display of affection.

Ellie hid her hands in the material of her mourning dress, clutching the cloth to stop her from shaking her leg over her impatience.

“I wish there was another clothing establishment in town catering to women. I may talk Yvonne about investing in such a business tonight at dinner,” Geraldine announced and patted her hair.

Mina gave her mother a shocked look. “But Mama, you would go into a trade? How provincial.”

Geraldine didn’t comment on her daughter’s outrage and nodded in the direction of the staircase. “Run upstairs for our shawls. Then we can go.”

Mina gave Geraldine a kiss on her cheek and bolted up the stairs.

“Are there any extra chores you would like me to do while you both are away today?” Ellie asked, hoping her volunteering would keep Geraldine in happy spirits.

Geraldine gave her a shrewd look. Ellie held her breath, waiting for her next direction.

“You should come with us to Yvonne’s. She’s been asking for you.”

“Me-me?” Ellie stammered, taken aback.

“Yes, you-you,” Geraldine sniped, her eyes swarming with indignation. Her hand shot out and clasped Ellie’s chin.

“Perhaps I will loan you to Yvonne. For some odd reason she wants to take you under her wing. She always did have a tender spot for Angelica. Like mother, like daughter.” Geraldine’s eyes flashed with ire when she mentioned her mother’s name.

Ellie dug her fingers into her palms. “But then you wouldn’t have anybody to take care of the house,” she said, barely above a whisper.

Geraldine thrust her away, but not before one of her long nails caught the underside of her chin. “I don’t appreciate your sass, young lady—”

“I wasn’t sassing—”

“Silence!” Geraldine’s sharp voice rang out.

Ellie dipped her chin down to her chest and waited for the slap to come.

“Mama? I’m ready.”

Ellie inhaled through her nose, silently thanking Mina for interrupting. The stinging cut on her face gave her something to concentrate on other than her distress.

“I invited your stepsister to dine with us, but like always, she has treated me with disrespect and had the audacity to talk back to me. She will stay here and go without.”

Ellie lifted her head and willed tears to fill her eyes. It wasn’t hard for her to do. When Geraldine noticed, she smiled in satisfaction.

“Come along, Mina.” Geraldine took her shawl and gloves Mina gave her. “When will you ever learn?” she asked Ellie while she wrapped her shawl around her shoulders.

Mina waited behind her mother and shook her head in disappointment.

“I will convey your absence to Yvonne. She won’t be happy, but I’ll handle her like I always do,” Geraldine announced.

Ellie found that statement odd, but then again, her stepmother always said strange things when it came to the countess.

Geraldine swiped her hands down the front of her dress and with a swish of her skirts, she followed Mina outside.

When the door slammed shut, Ellie collapsed to the floor, trembling. She sat against back the wall and squeezed her hands together to stop their shaking. It wasn’t until August climbed into her lap that she composed herself.

“It’s all better now. She’s gone,” she whispered against the side of August neck. Jack stood near her hip on his hind legs, squeaking loudly. She let out a short laugh by the sight.

Wiping her eyes, she rose to her feet and combed back her hair with her fingers. Everything would be all right now. She would be able to slip away and see Diana and not have to worry about rushing home to take care of Geraldine and Mina.

The tightness in her chest and sour feeling in her stomach disappeared as she thought about escaping the confines of the house and the distressing confrontation with her stepmother. Hopefully Geraldine would drink too much wine, as was the case whenever she dined with the countess and her brother, and end up staying in bed for most of the day tomorrow. But then Geraldine would rant and complain, which had grown worse right around the time Papa got sick.

Oh Papa, why did you die and leave me here to suffer?

She shook her head in misery. Why would her papa fight to stay alive for her when he didn’t care about her when he had been healthy and sound?

There was no use harping on the past and why she had been lacking in her father’s eyes. It didn’t do her any good and would lead to more tears and bleak thoughts.

She rotated her shoulders to relieve the stiffness there. She needed to change out of her current dress and into something more suitable, perhaps even fix her hair with a ribbon she could borrow from Mina. She smiled, thinking back to the way Diana had complimented her on her hair.

She turned to go to her bedroom when there was a knock on the door and an envelope was slipped underneath it. She picked it up and scanned Geraldine’s and Mina’s names. There was no mention of her name; not that she expected there to be. She turned the envelope around and noticed the Perrault crest on the back.

Curiosity ate away at her. But she would be punished if she even dared to open it. She would find out soon enough what it was when Geraldine read and shared the news with Mina while she listened in.

She dropped the envelope on the side table and hurried to her room to look presentable for her tutor.

* * * *

“They’re all mad as hatters,” Noah muttered and straightened his glasses.

Women of all ages had taken over the main showroom in order to get fitted for the Perrault masked ball. Invitations had been sent out, and once they were opened, the female population of Aulnory went into a tizzy. Rumors persisted this ball was for Simon to search for a suitable bride. He knew all about the dynamics of the dreaded ball. Simon had told him during one of their trysts. While he lay under Simon panting after being buggered within an inch of his life, he told him how ridiculous the entire thing was and how he had no interest in marriage.

That gave Noah hope he and Simon could continue on as they were. He didn’t mind being secretive and overly cautious when it came to their affair. They didn’t have a future together anyway, so he would live in the moment with Simon. When the time came for Simon to marry, he would break things off and wish him well. He also wouldn’t stay in Aulnory and would strike out on his own. His heart could only take so much. Watching Simon with someone, a
woman
he could proudly claim as his wife, was too painful to bear.

When a customer came over to the counter with a few bundles, Noah rang up her order, remaining cordial when all he wanted to do was go up to his bedroom and take a nap.

The bell over the door rang. In walked the de Saltin ladies, both of whom had dumbfounded expressions on their faces at the throngs of women picking and choosing fabric and dresses.

“What in the world is going on?” the baroness asked above the ramble and marched over to Clement, who stood in the middle of the room giving directions.

Noah finished ringing up the woman’s order and waved the next one in line ahead when Mina popped up behind the counter and came over to his side.

“Excuse me, I have an appointment with Mr. Lyons now,” Mina announced in a pleasant voice and dragged him into the back. Angry female voices rose up in an earsplitting chorus.

He yanked his arm away, not amused in the slightest by Mina’s audacity. “What’s wrong with you? I need to get back out there before there’s a riot.”

“I’ve never seen it like this. Is there a discount you failed to tell me about?” Mina gave him a pout and twirled her hair around a finger.

He snorted. “You’re wasting your time flirting with me. I’ve known you too long to fall for your feminine wiles.”

Mina tapped her foot and crossed her arms. “You’re so queer when it comes to women. Most men would fall over backward to do whatever I ask.”

“Don’t I know it,” he mumbled and squeezed the back of his neck. Before Mina could interrogate him, two seamstresses walked out from one of the work rooms. He asked them to handle the customers’ payments. Satisfied when he and Mina were alone once again, he motioned for her to accompany him down the hall and near a door leading to the back.

“You don’t have to worry there’s a discount you’re missing out on.” He patted her arm to put her concerns to rest. “An hour ago a rush of women barreled in waving invitations about from the Perraults. They were sent out to any family with a single daughter of marriageable age. The duke and the duchess will host a masked ball in seven days. They have invited any single woman over the age of sixteen within a fifty-mile radius to attend, in the hopes Lord Simon will marry one lucky lady.”

“Sounds like a desperate measure on the duke’s and duchess’s part.” Mina frowned. “Simon must be less than thrilled that his parents would go through such lengths. And how in the world can he choose the right woman when he won’t have any clue what she looks like?”

He rubbed the bridge of his nose and released a weak laugh. “He’s amused by the whole thing.”

“And how would you know?” Mina examined him with fire in her eyes.

She’s jealous!
He sighed and dropped his hands on Mina’s shoulders, staring down at her in humor. “It’s an assumption. It’s not like I move in the same social circles as his grace. I’m just a lowly tailor’s assistant.”

He didn’t mean to sound cross, especially with Mina, who he usually got along with and liked for some strange reason even if she didn’t always treat Ellie with respect. With a mother like the baroness, he couldn’t help but have compassion for her.